I just bought the kindle version and downloaded into my Android tablet (Nook HD) using the Kindle App. It's nice to have a backup in the Kindle Cloud for whenever I'm at a computer but don't have my tablet. That's the advantage of Kindle over other formats, imo.

"Use what seems like poison as medicine. We can use our personal suffering as the path to compassion for all beings." Pema Chodron

I would like to offer my apologies. It was not my intention to appear to be criticising Gyatrul Rinpoche. I am in no position to be critical of anyone or anything quite frankly. I feel rather foolish right now.

“Not till your thoughts cease all their branching here and there, not till you abandon all thoughts of seeking for something, not till your mind is motionless as wood or stone, will you be on the right road to the Gate.”

Well, I downloaded the book and was not thrilled to read "you can't simply receive a mala from someone else and just start using it." Apparently, you must bless it first. Unfortunately, the particular ritual he gives for blessing it is full of words I don't know how to pronounce properly. How does one pronounce A vs AA, for example? There must be other blessing rituals out there which are much simpler and some teachers would probably say it's not necessary at all. So, if anyone has other blessing rituals they know of, please post links. Thanks.

"Use what seems like poison as medicine. We can use our personal suffering as the path to compassion for all beings." Pema Chodron

padma norbu wrote:Well, I downloaded the book and was not thrilled to read "you can't simply receive a mala from someone else and just start using it." Apparently, you must bless it first. Unfortunately, the particular ritual he gives for blessing it is full of words I don't know how to pronounce properly. How does one pronounce A vs AA, for example? There must be other blessing rituals out there which are much simpler and some teachers would probably say it's not necessary at all. So, if anyone has other blessing rituals they know of, please post links. Thanks.

The section you are referring to is the part where you recite the sanskrit alphabet that starts with अ (A) and अा (AA) these are the short and long version of the vowel A - but then there are also the clearing and purifying mantras and I can understand that this might seem quite complex.

tomamundsen wrote:Question on this business of blessing your own mala: shouldn't the person reciting the blessing have some mantric accomplishment so that the recited mantra blessings actually do something?

padma norbu wrote:Well, I downloaded the book and was not thrilled to read "you can't simply receive a mala from someone else and just start using it." Apparently, you must bless it first. Unfortunately, the particular ritual he gives for blessing it is full of words I don't know how to pronounce properly. How does one pronounce A vs AA, for example? There must be other blessing rituals out there which are much simpler and some teachers would probably say it's not necessary at all. So, if anyone has other blessing rituals they know of, please post links. Thanks.

The section you are referring to is the part where you recite the sanskrit alphabet that starts with अ (A) and अा (AA) these are the short and long version of the vowel A - but then there are also the clearing and purifying mantras and I can understand that this might seem quite complex.

Thanks. The blessing is from a different lineage, so yeah its pretty different from anything I've heard/seen before. This OM RU TSI RAMA NI TRA WATRA YA HUM is easy enough, but I have no idea what it is. I Googled it and got nothing. Is there any explanation for whose mantra it is?

"Use what seems like poison as medicine. We can use our personal suffering as the path to compassion for all beings." Pema Chodron

in my sadhanas it is enough to say om rutsiramani pravartaya hum 7 times and then blow on your mala and rub it in your hands

If the thought of demons Never rises in your mind, You need not fear the demon hosts around you. It is most important to tame your mind within....

In so far as the Ultimate, or the true nature of being is concerned, there are neither buddhas or demons. He who frees himself from fear and hope, evil and virtue, will realize the insubstantial and groundless nature of confusion. Samsara will then appear as the mahamudra itself….

KonchokZoepa wrote:in my sadhanas it is enough to say om rutsiramani pravartaya hum 7 times and then blow on your mala and rub it in your hands

This is also the same mantra as the one in my previous post. The variation "trawatraya" for "pravartaya" is due to the fact that "pra" when transliterated into Tibetan (པྲ) is pronounced in native Tibetan as "tra" and also since there is no "va" in the Tibetan alphabet it is often transliterated as "wa."

Sorry, Padma Norbu - I don't have the explanation of the mantra to hand. Maybe someone else will chime in...

I think I have found some incorrect information, but I'm checking with you guys...

"‘Bodhi’ seeds, which is a misnomer, are from a tree related to the Rudraksha (Elaeocarpus ganitrus) and not the Bodhi tree (being a fig tree, its seeds are inside a tiny fig, and are miniscule). The scientific name of this tree, native to Nepal, is yet to be determined."— http://digital-dharma.net/2008/02/26/anatomy-of-a-bodhi-seed/

"Use what seems like poison as medicine. We can use our personal suffering as the path to compassion for all beings." Pema Chodron

So my new bodhi seed mala has about 8 beads with additional holes on the sides. Small little cracky holes that look like minor damage rather than intentionally drilled by accident. I have recently read that any cracked beads should be replaced right away with non-cracked beads. This gets in the realm of the superstitious for me, but I don't know if I want to keep it with these holes. That will probably be in the back of my mind and drive me nuts. Is it common for bodhi seed malas to have additional little cracks/holes? I thought my old bodhi seed wrist mala was similar, but when I got home, I saw that none of the beads have additional holes like this. If it's pretty common for bodhi seeds, I won't return it. If you think they should be replaced with non-damaged beads, I will just return it and hope I get my money back through Paypal.

"Use what seems like poison as medicine. We can use our personal suffering as the path to compassion for all beings." Pema Chodron

padma norbu wrote:So my new bodhi seed mala has about 8 beads with additional holes on the sides. Small little cracky holes that look like minor damage rather than intentionally drilled by accident. I have recently read that any cracked beads should be replaced right away with non-cracked beads. This gets in the realm of the superstitious for me, but I don't know if I want to keep it with these holes. That will probably be in the back of my mind and drive me nuts. Is it common for bodhi seed malas to have additional little cracks/holes? I thought my old bodhi seed wrist mala was similar, but when I got home, I saw that none of the beads have additional holes like this. If it's pretty common for bodhi seeds, I won't return it. If you think they should be replaced with non-damaged beads, I will just return it and hope I get my money back through Paypal.

So, Rinpoche said these additional holes are no problem. It is more of a problem if you drop the mala and it cracks or something like that.

padma norbu wrote:I think I have found some incorrect information, but I'm checking with you guys...

"‘Bodhi’ seeds, which is a misnomer, are from a tree related to the Rudraksha (Elaeocarpus ganitrus) and not the Bodhi tree (being a fig tree, its seeds are inside a tiny fig, and are miniscule). The scientific name of this tree, native to Nepal, is yet to be determined."— http://digital-dharma.net/2008/02/26/anatomy-of-a-bodhi-seed/

I think bodhi seed beads do not actually come from the bodhi tree but from some other variety of tree found in Nepal, but I'm not sure of the exact name. It could be the one mentioned above.

Cool, thanks Tom. I'm hoping my "bodhi seed" mala is from the wood of the bodhi tree rather than rudraksha. Looking at them, I can't really tell. Could easily be either a smoothed-down rudraksha seed or some kind of gnarly wood smoothed down... but, I'm guessing smoothed down rudraksha makes the most sense because I see no reason bodhi tree wood would be any harder to smooth down than sandalwood. So... I am guessing it's not really "infinitely multiplying" since it's not really bodhi seed.

"Use what seems like poison as medicine. We can use our personal suffering as the path to compassion for all beings." Pema Chodron

i think the paradox or dilemma here is that there is no real bodhiseed malas, coming from the bodhitree.

If the thought of demons Never rises in your mind, You need not fear the demon hosts around you. It is most important to tame your mind within....

In so far as the Ultimate, or the true nature of being is concerned, there are neither buddhas or demons. He who frees himself from fear and hope, evil and virtue, will realize the insubstantial and groundless nature of confusion. Samsara will then appear as the mahamudra itself….